Top Fresher Tips!
1. Get that student bank account sorted.
Have a look around and see which branch suits you best. Not only do they come with interest free overdrafts (be VERY careful) but also they usually come with a freebie or some fun perks for opening the account too.
2. Friends!
As much as you might be tempted to lock yourself away in your room right away, don’t! Meet your flat, meet your neighbours, meet your new class friends. But also don’t feel obliged to stick around with the first person you meet, spread those fresher wings!
3. Sign up to the doctors.
Fresher’s Flu is really a thing. Don’t leave it too late.
4. Work out a budget.
Whether you’ve come with savings set aside for the very reason of blowing it on booze; money really doesn’t go as far as you think. Make sure you have a weekly shop and some cupboard staples before you go thinking you have enough student loan to spend on extravagant extras.
5. Make your room homely.
You might not consider yourself a decorative kind of person but you’ll definitely appreciate something that makes your room yours. So put up a poster, colourful bunting or some fairy lights, flick the kettle on and give your mum a call – she misses you.
6. Clean. Your. Dishes.
Genuinely most flat arguments will be about dirty dishes or lack of toilet roll. RESPECT your flatmates whether you get on with them or not. At uni, one man’s trash… Is still another man’s trash.
7. Experimenting?
Let’s not ignore it. This is a huge part of university life and you’ll want to delve into something at some point so whatever it may be; sex, drugs, your own identity or even just drinking for the first time — stay safe. Stay in places you’re comfortable and know, stay with people you trust, be CAREFUL but most importantly, have fun! (Whenever it stops being fun, make sure you also know who you can turn to or where you can go: whether it’s a best friend from home or support through the university).
So Fresher’s, welcome to Derby and kick off this new chapter of your life with a bang! Go to the Fresher’s Fair, join a society, or just come say hello to Phantom Media – we don’t bite, much.
